Daring Do and the Eternal Flower
Daring Do and the Eternal Flower by A. K. Yearling is the ninth book in a series of chapter books published by Little, Brown and Company and the second installment in the Daring Do Adventure Collection. In the story, Daring Do seeks out a flower whose magical properties are believed to grant immortality. Production The book's author is credited as "A. K. Yearling", the fictional pseudonym of Daring Do, but is actually written by regular My Little Pony chapter book author G. M. Berrow. The book is bundled in the Adventure Collection with Daring Do and the Marked Thief of Marapore, Daring Do and the Forbidden City of Clouds, a cardboard replica of the book that hid the Ring of Destiny in Daring Don't, a gold-painted miniature Daring Do figurine, and a cardboard treasure chest that houses the entire collection. It will be released as a single book on April 12, 2016. Summary The Equestrian Botanical Society The story opens at a banquet held by the Equestrian Botanical Society; Daring Do attends as one of the event's guests of honor. Enduring the discomfort of a fancy ball gown, Daring hopes to meet Thaddeus Vine and Madame Willow Fern, who recently published an article about the Eternal Flower—a plant said to grant immortality. Daring sees Vine and Fern sitting at a ballroom table and, through lip-reading, learns that they indeed know something about the flower. But when she approaches them, two of Dr. Caballeron's henchponies suddenly ambush her. Ponies empty out of the ballroom in the ensuing commotion. By the time Daring incapacitates the henchponies, Caballeron himself has taken Vine and Fern hostage. Having obtained what he came for—a strange leaf in a glass bottle—Caballeron agrees to release his hostages if Daring lets him and his henchponies walk away free. With a nod from Vine, Daring begrudgingly agrees to the terms, and the ponies make their escape. The Key to Gallant True Vine and Fern lead Daring Do to the Equestrian Botanical Society's library. They explain that the whole purpose of the banquet was to lure Daring in and recruit her for a mission. They ask Daring to find their missing colleague Gallant True—Daring's uncle, who she knows as her uncle Adventure ("Uncle Ad" for short). Before his disappearance, he had also been looking for the Eternal Flower and kept saying he couldn't wait to see Daring again face-to-face. Despite the circumstances of Caballeron's escape and Thaddeus Vine's odd behavior, Daring accepts the mission. Willow Fern gives her a key entrusted to them by Gallant True, and Daring dismisses the two from the library to "do some last-minute research." With Gallant's 'face-to-face' clue, Daring uses the key to open a secret compartment behind his portrait. Inside, she finds a second leaf like the one Caballeron stole, labeled "Everleaf", as well as Gallant's journal, which contains all of his research on the Eternal Flower. With the Everleaf and journal in her possession, Daring Do sets out to find her missing uncle. To Catch a Leaf Thief Through Gallant True's journal, Daring Do learns that both Everleaves are needed to find the Eternal Flower, acting as a compass when brought together, and that the Eternal Flower is distinguishable by its curved, infinity symbol-shaped roots. With this knowledge, Daring tracks Dr. Caballeron to his and his henchponies' campsite and demands the other Everleaf. Unfortunately, Caballeron has already sold it to Ahuizotl, not caring that Ahuizotl could soon be immortal. Daring Do takes off to search for her missing uncle, receiving help from Caballeron's newest henchpony-for-hire: a Pegasus mare named Rosy Thorn. Rosy Thorn leads Daring to a temple on the edge of a cliff where, according to her, Ahuizotl has Gallant True held captive. Daring sees Ahuizotl and his henchponies come out of the temple with the Everleaf and Gallant True, his hooves bound by rope and his unicorn magic sealed. Before going to save Gallant, Daring warns Rosy Thorn of the possibility that one of them will be captured. Rosy understands, and the two mount a rescue. Daring and Rosy succeed in recovering the Everleaf and freeing Gallant True, but Ahuizotl manages to capture Rosy, forcing Daring and Gallant to leave her behind. The Secret of the Everleaves After a heartfelt reunion between Daring and Gallant, the two use the Everleaves and rubrics in Gallant's journal to point them in the direction of the Eternal Flower. Gallant True places the Everleaves on the pages of his journal ("leaf the pages"), and a magical beam of light points out to sea. Daring realizes that the leaves point toward the Isles of Scaly—a dragon-occupied region that can only be reached by dragons ("travel the scales"). She takes out a shell whistle and summons a dragon named Knuckerbocker, who had helped Daring on a previous adventure. Knuckerbocker carries Daring and Gallant to the islands, but soon after they arrive, Ahuizotl—who'd been following them every step of the way—appears and captures Daring. With him are Thaddeus Vine, who'd been conspiring with Ahuizotl from the beginning, and Rosy Thorn, a double agent and Vine's sister. The three convince Gallant to lead them to the Eternal Flower in exchange for his and Daring's lives. Grotto of the Moon Held at spearpoint by their enemies, Daring Do and Gallant True follow the Everleaves to the Eternal Flower's location. The path leads to a large river, and Ahuizotl commands his henchponies to build a raft. Gallant True uses his magic to construct a second raft. Using a sudden dragon attack as a diversion, Daring and Gallant escape across the river on the second raft. With Ahuizotl, Thaddeus, and Rosy in hot pursuit, Daring and Gallant follow the river into a cove. On the other side of a roaring waterfall, they find themselves in the Grotto of the Moon—a crescent-shaped grotto filled with flowers. Daring and Gallant race to find the Eternal Flower before Ahuizotl and his accomplices do. Gallant explains that there's no way to know what the flower looks like and that it will reveal itself when it's ready. As Daring Do wonders what he means, she is suddenly pulled into a pocket dimension in which everything in the grotto appears upside-down. Inside this strange space, Daring could see the flowers' roots ("examine the roots"), and she finds the Eternal Flower's distinct roots shaped like the symbol for infinity. Daring is then returned to the Grotto of the Moon right-side up. She whispers to Gallant True that she knows which flower is the Eternal Flower. However, much to her horror, Ahuizotl appears to have found it first. The Eternal Flower Believing that he successfully found the Eternal Flower, Ahuizotl picks it and brings it to his lips. Fortunately, the flower he picked was poison joke, causing him to shrink to the size of a mouse. As the tiny Ahuizotl and his henchponies retreat, Thaddeus Vine enters. Having noticed Daring's nervousness when Ahuizotl nearly picked the correct flower, Vine's choice is narrowed down to two flowers, one of which is indeed the Eternal Flower. When Vine picks one of the flowers and drinks its nectar, his face suddenly swells up like a balloon; the flower he chose was a Southern Swelling Rose. As Vine floats away into the air and Rosy flies after him, Daring and Gallant have the Eternal Flower to themselves. Daring eagerly waits for Gallant to pick it, but he simply proposes that they go home. Some time later, at a diner in Horseshoe Bay, Daring asks Gallant why he didn't want to bring the Eternal Flower back with him. Gallant explains that when you spend a lifetime searching for something, sometimes you enjoy the chase more than the treasure. In addition, realizing how dangerous the Eternal Flower is in the wrong hands, Gallant has destroyed his journal and the Everleaves so it can never be found again. Though she's sad to have given up such a priceless treasure, Daring thinks Gallant made the right decision. Quotes :General Sparks: Excuse me for my ill manners, Miss Do. I would ask you to dance, but I'm afraid I have four left hooves. Though if you begged, I could attempt a fox-trot.... :Daring Do: That's quite all right, General. I don't dance. :Dr. Caballeron: By the way, Daring, you really should consider wearing dresses more often. You look kind of...nice. :Thaddeus Vine: Your uncle spoke of you often. Said you were the most fearless pony he'd ever met—even as a filly—but that you were also incredibly stubborn. :Daring Do: Hold tight, Uncle Adventure! I'm on my way. :Dr. Caballeron: Small world, Daring Do. :Daring Do: Not big enough for the two of us, Caballeron. :Gallant True: I was wondering when you'd show up, my Darling Do. :Gallant True: Vine, you filthy conspirator! Do our years of careful research mean nothing to you?! Think of the Eternal Flower! :Thaddeus Vine: On the contrary, my dear colleague. They mean everything to me. And to my top benefactor here, Ahuizotl, as well. That's why you and your 'darling' niece are going to take us to it. :Rosy Thorn: If you're thinking about escaping—don't. You've seen me in action. I'm fast enough to catch you. :Ahuizotl: At long last, I've found it! Now I will experience the glory of everlasting life! :Ahuizotl: NOOOOOoooooo! :Gallant True: How silly of you, Ahuizotl. Do you not know a Poison Joke Flower when you see one?! :Daring Do: There's one thing I still don't understand, Uncle Ad. Why didn't you want to bring the Eternal Flower back with you to Equestria? :Gallant True: It's a funny thing, Daring. Sometimes you spend a lifetime chasing something, then when you get it, you find out that it was really the chase you loved all the while. :Daring Do: So you never wanted to become immortal? :Gallant True: Heavens, no! Nopony or beast should live forever, my dear. What an awful curse to have upon one's head! References